Tommy Taylor and the Ship That Sank Twice

Gr 7 Up—This title can serve as an entry point to the author's "Unwritten" series, or as a standalone prequel. Tom Taylor is magically linked to the fictional character, Tommy Taylor, from the fantasy book series written by his father, Wilson Taylor. While looking for his missing dad, Tom and friends cross over into this fantasy world, and fiction slowly becomes reality. The fictional Tommy receives his magical powers in this volume, and in a parallel narrative, Wilson crafts his first book, and orchestrates a twisted publicity stunt to make his son and his book character the same person in the eyes of the public. This is the first time that Carey has tackled these subjects, so longtime fans of Carey's comics will be eager to pick this up, while those new to this world may be confused about the complexity of the two plots. Both story lines are equally compelling and balance each other out wonderfully—Tommy's sections is filled with magical adventures and Harry Potter—esque whimsy, while Wilson's tale is filled with dark, psychological mind games. Art style and coloring changes throughout the piece to perfectly match the changing moods—an epic storm at sea is drawn with rich pastel and heavy-textured color, while scenes of Wilson are often drawn with simple lines and blue-shading. An excellent installment to the series.—Peter Blenski, Greenfield Public Library, WI